Tennis Ball Drill Recommendation

[howtobrew]

I am recommending hanging a tennis ball on a string for every new/intermediate fencer. It is a great way to develop your eye-hand coordination. It is so annoying to see the opening, make the thrust, and MISS!

Get a long string if possible so that the arc that the ball swings thru is flatter. I have mine hanging from a tree limb outside over the patio. Probably about 9-10 ft off the ground. You could also hang it from your basketball hoop.

I have found it very useful for practicing parry-riposte motions, as well as counter-attacks. (ex. En garde in 6, drop the point to hit the arm, return to 6)
Unlike many of you collegiate fencers, I only have access to the strip one night a week, so having a moving target to hit at home really helps my aim. (I know; my son was game but one glare from my wife squelched it.)

The design:
I have a wire going thru the ball forming an eyelet to tie the string to, and a tautline hitch in the string so that I can adjust the height of the ball to match different target areas (knee, forearm, chest).

This really beats poking at the wall.

[great bowyer]

i heard that a golf ball is better for this.

[Elemental]

Sometimes it helps to start with a tennis ball and then move to a golf ball.

I use a golf ball for foil but I'm still using a tennis ball to work on my angliation(sp?) in epee

Either way it's a great train tool.

[D+F+P=Hadouken!]

Don't be a craphead. Get a dime or a penny, and drill a hole through it. Hang it up and with some dental floss. I can hit it 4/10 times which I took from an average of 10 sets of 10 pokes. Its great for developing point control, and after doing it for a few weeks, the tennis ball is no problem whatsoever. I've found it to improve my probability of making tight shots. Its good to have confidence in your ability to hit a target that presents itself, and it certainly subtracts from your fencing if you see a target and are unsure about your probability to hit it.

[Dax]

My coach has started us on that, and I am doing it at home. I am going to work up from a tennis ball to a penny...

[pammie003]

I use tennis balls to practice changing the line of my attack. I have 4 or 5 in different colors strung along the rope (I fence epee, so there's enough room for this many). I lunge, then someone yells out a colour, and I have to adjust accordingly. It's helped with my disengages... I now remember that I can do them mid-lunge too.

[Dax]

That is a really good idea!!! Thanks for the tip!

[Bonehead]

If you have a gym and like to run around looking nuts... get a tennis ball, toss it in the air, and try to hit it with the tip hard enough to direct it somewhere. Its fairly difficult, but for some reason it feels really satisfying when you do manage to do it. And then once you get good, see how many times you can bounce it off the wall or between you and a friend. Its actually quite addictive.

[Heisenberg]

I recently made some tennis ball targets for the youngsters at our club. They are having a blast with them. Golf balls, maybe marbles are next. We do target practice, and tip work, moving around the ball without touching it.

We fence in a rec hall gym, and we can't leave our gear out between sessions. We hang our targets over the basketball net supports, and take them down when we are done. I used cheap drawstring catches so the strings can be undone quick and easy.

[Victor]

Originally Posted by D+F+P=Hadouken!

Don't be a craphead.

??? What prompted that particular turn of phrase?
Totally uncalled for.

[BrianH]

Originally Posted by Victor

??? What prompted that particular turn of phrase?
Totally uncalled for.

Agreed, but his prefrontal cortex will not have developed for another ten years or so. Ergo, don't expect great judgement.

[howtobrew]

Do you drill a hole thru the golfball or what?

[mrbiggs]

Originally Posted by howtobrew

Do you drill a hole thru the golfball or what?

Yes. It's not as easy as a tennis ball, thus the tennis ball is more common.

I guess that any spherical object would work, but I wouldn't go much larger than a tennis ball.

[JohnK]

Originally Posted by howtobrew

Do you drill a hole thru the golfball or what?

No drilling needed. Just use a hammer and nail to start a hole in the golfball, and just get a small screw eye and twist it into the hole by hand. Then attach with fishing line or string somewhere to the hook and and you're good to go.

[Captain Hook]

My coach recommended the same thing.

unfotunatley I don't have any room indoors to have a tennis ball swinging around and the weather is still freezing outside

So I'm practising with targets with a dot of ink drawn on until sun decides to show itself

[remise]

I didn't have room either....I hang mine from my bedroom door. With warnings to anyone walking in the halls, however.

[qatet]

attaching 2 or 3 balls to the string changes the arc and makes the ball's movements less predictable, while simultaneously giving practice with different target heights. At my club the balls are held up by the little plastic gizmos that are on drawstrings for windbreaker hoods, which makes changing the height of each ball a breeze.

Also, stringing the balls on rubber bands or other similarly stretchy material makes the movements less predictable by giving some vertical motion.

[fresfisher929]

ping pong balls anyone? smaller than golf balls and incredibly easy to use... just stick a hole in it.

[melihop]

Originally Posted by fresfisher929

ping pong balls anyone? smaller than golf balls and incredibly easy to use... just stick a hole in it.

don't they dent easy?? Mabey i just hit too hard...

[Mr Epee]

Tennis balls are by far the best choice.

I have never fenced anyone smaller than a tennis ball, and the goal of this exercise is not so much the ability to hit a tiny target, as it is to develop focus and a smooth accurate execution.

Nice comfortable hits.